Design Guidelines for Building and Infrastructure Integrated Photovoltaic Modules

The demand for renewable energy is increasing as efforts to decarbonize energy sources continue. Photovoltaic (PV) generation systems are the main contributor to the growth of renewable energy, but limited land availability in countries such as Belgium and Netherlands poses a challenge to their deployment. Integrated PV (IPV) can be a promising solution, but requires special consideration regarding electrical and fire safety, efficiency, durability, cost, and environmental impact in the design process. This study seeks to assist designers of IPV products by guiding the selection of materials, technologies, mechanical designs, and production methods for PV semifabricates (SF). It provides a comprehensive list of general design criteria, each offering various options in terms of bill of materials and production technologies. These options come with their own set of advantages and disadvantages, which are enumerated and quantified wherever feasible. The general design guidelines are validated based on the building-integrated PV and infrastructure-integrated PV demonstrators (in this case a noise barrier) being developed in the Solar Energy Made Regional (SolarEMR) project. This study supports integrated photovoltaic (IPV) product designers in selecting materials, technologies, mechanical designs, and production methods for PV semifabricates. It offers a detailed list of design criteria with various bill of materials and production technology options, outlining their respective pros and cons, which are quantified when possible. The general design guidelines are validated based on two IPV demonstrators.image (c) 2024 WILEY-VCH GmbH